Red Lake Middle School opens new addition

By Molly Miron

Pioneer Editor

      RED LAKE - Red Lake High School, home of the Ogichidaag (Warriors), will have a new look for students returning next week.

            With a $12.4 million capital bond from the Minnesota State Legislature, Red Lake added 12 new classrooms and a culture center to the high school. The funding also covered remodeling of existing classrooms and adding classrooms at the Ponemah Elementary School and Red Lake Early Childhood Education Center.

      The new high school section features four rooms for English classes, three mathematics rooms, a computer lab, three science rooms with laboratory facilities and amphitheater seating, and a family and consumer science (home economics) room with new appliances and a sewing center.

      The culture center is illuminated by a central skylight and floored with carpet in a Native American pattern. The circle of chairs around the room, as well as a long board room table in the center, are fashioned from pine poles and boards with a shiny finish. The cushions were sewn by home economics teacher Peggy Nelson.

      The rustic motif is repeated in the lectern, easel and occasional tables. A birch bark container holds sage and sweet grass. The Ojibwe words for the four directions are carved into the walls.

      On a circular shelf around the upper level of the room, the animal symbols of the seven clans gaze down at the proceedings below. Patrick Desjarlait carved and painted the bear, turtle, bullhead, mink, eagle, pine marten and kingfisher clan symbols, which are labeled with their Ojibwe names.

      The outside of the high school addition is decorated with mosaic tile depicting an Ojibwe floral pattern. The mosaic design also covers interior walls, and a painted boarder between the hallway walls and ceiling also uses the running floral design. The ceiling in what will be the main entrance is tongue-and-groove poplar, an important species of wood in the area.

      Eventually, the oldest part of the high school will be demolished and the main entrance will be moved from the west side to the new addition, said Stephanie Cobenais, finance director.

      About 355 students are enrolled in Red Lake High School. The entire school district serves about 1,440 in kindergarten-12th grade.

      The new addition was designed by DLR Group of the Twin Cities and Kraus-Anderson served as the construction manager.

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